Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s appeal to the U.S. to help secure the freedom of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor is “a waste of time” and “doomed to fail,” China’s foreign ministry said Friday.
Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang delivered the remarks at a media briefing one day after Trudeau urged Washington to delay finalizing a trade deal with China until the detained Canadians have been released.
“If you pull chestnuts out of the fire for others, you will end up being the one getting burned,” Geng said. He wouldn’t clarify whether the comment was a direct threat aimed at Canada.
Trudeau told TVA’s Salut Bonjour program Thursday that his government asked the Trump administration to hit pause on signing a final trade agreement.
The U.S. and China agreed on the first phase of a trade deal on Dec. 13 which includes a reduction in U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods.
Geng was critical of Canada’s move, warning that it was tantamount to “ganging up on China by forming cliques.”
‘Nothing to add’: PMO
When asked whether the U.S. had made any appeals for Kovrig and Spavor’s release, Geng evaded the question.
“We have said many times before, reaching Phase One serves the interests of China, U.S. and the world,” he said.
Had a very good talk with President Xi of China concerning our giant Trade Deal. China has already started large scale purchaes of agricultural product & more. Formal signing being arranged. Also talked about North Korea, where we are working with China, & Hong Kong (progress!).
The Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement Friday that it had “nothing to add” regarding whether Trudeau had received any kind of commitment from the Trump administration.
“You will recall that the U.S., along with other allies, raised the cases of our detainees both publicly and privately,” the statement says.
Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne said that Canada takes instruction from no other country when it comes to foreign policy.
“The only one who [is] going to dictate the foreign policy of Canada is the Government of Canada,” he said in an interview with CBC Radio’s The House, airing Saturday.
‘I hope that Mr. Trump would think twice’: Guy Saint-Jacques
According to former Canadian ambassador to China Guy Saint-Jacques, it would be in the Trump administration’s best interest to intervene on Canada’s behalf.
“I think they would run the risk of being alone themselves, because countries would say, ‘Why would we help you after what we have seen what you did to the Canadians?'” Saint-Jacques said. “I hope that Mr. Trump would think twice.”
The former ambassador said Trudeau’s request of the U.S. government is in line with Canada’s actions since relations with China began to fray late last year.
“The campaign that Canada has followed since the start of this crisis to seek support from allies … has had success,” he said.
As for China’s comments, Saint-Jacques said that they “reflect the new Chinese diplomatic style, which is more in your face than trying to save face. It shows that the relationship is not very good.”
Kovrig, Spavor now facing trial
Earlier this month, China transferred Spavor and Kovrig’s cases to prosecutorial authorities for investigation and prosecution. The two will now go to trial on charges connected to national security.
Kovrig’s case is related to allegations of “covertly gathering state secrets and intelligence for foreign sources,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said Dec. 10.
Spavor’s case involves allegations of “stealing and illegally providing state secrets to foreign forces.”
Conservative foreign affairs critic Erin O’Toole has tabled a motion to strike a special committee calling it an “all party approach” to conduct hearings to review the Canada-China relationship. 0:37
Kovrig and Spavor have been detained for more than a year. They were taken by Chinese authorities days after Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada at the request of the U.S.
The federal government said the men only have limited access to consular assistance and have not had contact with lawyers or family members.
HALIFAX – An energy firm based in Ireland says it is planning to produce aviation fuel using about 700,000 tonnes of wood biomass annually.
Simply Blue Group announced today that construction would begin in 2026 with the bio fuel project expected to be operating by 2029 in Goldboro, N.S., about 165 kilometres northeast of Halifax.
The company says it has secured about 305 hectares of land for development, including 108 hectares previously owned by Pieridae — which had planned to build an LNG plant at the site — and 198 hectares owned by the Municipality of the District of Guysborough.
Based in Cork, Ireland, the company says its aviation fuel performs like conventional jet fuel but reduces greenhouse gases by “approximately 90 per cent.”
Simply Blue says that every year the project will source about 700,000 tonnes of biomass from Wagner Forest NS Ltd. to produce 150,000 tonnes of the fuel.
Tory Rushton, the province’s natural resources minister, issued a statement saying the plant could represent a new market for the province’s forestry sector.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
FREDERICTON – New Brunswick RCMP are disputing claims that the recent shooting death of an Indigenous man in mental distress happened during a police wellness check.
Assistant commissioner DeAnna Hill, commander of the New Brunswick RCMP, says that information is inaccurate.
On Monday, the RCMP said two officers responded to a report of an armed man in mental distress at a home in the Elsipogtog First Nation, where one Mountie shot the man after the other failed to subdue him with a stun gun.
Erin Nauss, director of the Serious Incident Response Team, says she understands the initial interaction on Sunday was not what the RCMP would call a wellness check, but she says the police oversight agency will conduct an investigation to “determine all of the facts.”
Meanwhile, a statement from an Indigenous group that works with the RCMP said they weren’t told about the deadly incident until it was too late, and the group described the Mounties’ initial role at the scene as a wellness check.
As well, New Brunswick Liberal Leader Susan Holt has described what happened as a wellness check gone wrong.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
HALIFAX – RCMP are expected to provide an update today on their investigation into the suspicious disappearance of a 55-year-old Nova Scotia woman.
Esther Jones was reported missing on Labour Day, and the RCMP’s major crime unit is now involved in the case.
According to police, Jones was last seen on Aug. 31 in Kingston, N.S., and family members reported her missing Sept. 2.
Two days later, officers found Jones’s vehicle, a silver 2009 Volkswagen Passat, abandoned in nearby Greenwood, N.S.
Jones is described as five-feet-four with a slim build, and she has brown, greying, shoulder-length hair and hazel eyes.
She may have been wearing a black T-shirt with ties on the shoulders, a black and floral below-the-knee skirt, and sunglasses with mirrored lenses when she was last seen.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
